1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mechanisms for towing vehicles and more particularly pertains to a new adapter for attaching a wheel lift apparatus to a road tractor for quickly mounting a towing apparatus to a road tractor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of mechanisms for towing vehicles is known in the prior art. More specifically, mechanisms for towing vehicles heretofore devised and utilized are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
A known prior art mechanism for towing vehicles includes U.S. Pat. No. 4,632,629. In this mechanism, the lift apparatus is attached to the rear end of a conventional tow truck. This patent does not disclose how such a lift apparatus could be attached to a road tractor.
While this device fulfills its particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patent does not disclose a new adapter for attaching a wheel lift apparatus to a road tractor. The inventive device includes a mounting frame having a gooseneck configuration defining a wide end and a narrow end, with the wide end of the mounting frame mounted on the frame of the road tractor, and the narrow end attached to both the fifth wheel plate of the road tractor and the tractor frame.
In these respects, the adapter for attaching a wheel lift apparatus to a road tractor according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of quickly mounting a towing apparatus to a road tractor.